Passing the Baton

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ALA Midwinter is always a time when I think of continuity, sustainability and how I can positively impact the health of my favorite division, ALSC. This is the time when the ALSC President-elect begins the appointments for chairs and members of many process committees. This link tells you about the process, has a volunteer form and let's you read about all the fabulous committees that are within ALSC.

My work as a Priority Group Consultant over the past two years for 11-13 committees and task forces has made this reflection at this time especially important. Keeping continuity strong from chair to chair and within the committees means a more smoothly functioning structure for ALSC. It also means that committees don't have to keep reinventing the wheel and instead can move ALSC, children's librarianship and services to children ahead at warp speed rather than turtle-pace.

We often volunteer for a committees and learn a ton and help accomplish alot together. But in my mind, equally important, is ensuring that the committee continues strongly.  How can we do that?

Chairs:
Look at committee members and mentor/support strong potential leaders who might make a great next chair or co-chair. Is there someone who is organized, meets deadlines, is able to listen as well as talk?  Do they have great ideas but also great follow-through? Do they seem willing to partner with others to get the work done? If you spot one or two people, work with them, show them the ropes and encourage them. Ask them if they might be willing to put their name in to be appointed next chair or co-chair (all appointments are done by the ALSC President-elect). Then email the President-elect and recommend that person.

Also consider people who would make committee members. Do you know people within the division who are willing to step up to serve? Do you know people especially from visible minorities within your library, system or state who would appreciate  chance to be active in ALSC committee work? Talk to them to fill in a volunteer form AND drop a note to the President elect to let her/him/them know that you have a good potential committee member for them.

By thinking beyond your term to ensure a smooth transition, you help strengthen sustainability and continuity for the committee or task force.

Committee Members:
Consider your service not only as a time to pitch in and do stuff but as a time to learn stuff - including how to step up as chair. Chairs are never left to fend for themselves in ALSC. There are often co-chairs; an ALSC office staff liaison who works with/communicates with the committee, a priority group consultant to help navigate the work and organizational structure of ALSC and an engaged board who cares about your service. You learn leadership in a safe and supportive environment.

You also can use your networks to identify potential members or put the word out for more members just like chairs can. Think about diversity, equity and inclusion as you invite people. Encourage them to volunteer and drop that note to the President-elect!

Your recommendation can make a difference in helping people become committee members or more active in ALSC. Thinking not just of yourself but of how you can encourage others to serve is a powerful way to sustain the strength of an organization you care about.

So pass the baton and lift others up through your mentorship and support!

Youth Librarian as Guide and Sister?

I appreciated this recent reflection on "parenting like a librarian" from Michelle Woo, writing for Lifehacker. In the article she references the work of John Holt, unschooling pioneer, and his belief that parents need to "get out the way" and allow kids to discover.  Woo then compares that advice to how we in the library world do just that: offer diverse choices; don't dictate what to read; take part in the cultural conversation; and help people follow their interests.

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This dovetails with something I share with grad students in my classes when we examine history and current practice in youth librarianship.

"Precepts and Practices" by Christine Jenkins published in the September/October 1999 issue of Hornbook has a much quoted set of  beliefs or central concepts in children's librarianship  that are part of our history as well as very present in our current librarianship. One of the seven beliefs she explicates is the the belief that children's librarians have "a friendly and unsentimental older sister's attitude towards children."

This particular description is one that often elicits the most discussion and controversy from students. (sometimes I wonder whether its because students might have fraught sibling relationships). So as I teach, I have given alot of thought to this. I think part of this belief description is turning away from the concept of youth librarians as motherly or grandmotherly; away from the concept of youth librarians as bosses; away from the concept of youth librarians as teachers.

Rather, the description enfolds the best of what an older sibling can provide: pathfinding guidance; experience; and support. Woo's article comes at this in much the same way and really speaks to me about how we approach our work with people of any age that use the library.

I like it!

Wanna Know ALL.THE.THINGS. in YS-ville?

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Well, actually I can't *quite* guarantee that but I can open the door to learning a passle of useful information on creating amazing Youth Services in the library.

I'm back in the CE saddle again in September teaching an 8 week basics course on Youth Services called Youth Services 101 at University of Wisconsin-Madison iSchool Continuing Ed Dept.  This course is perfect for library assistants, associates, directors of small libraries who wear ALL the hats, part-timers and full-timers...really, anyone who would like a more solid grounding in working with kids birth though age 18 and their families.

We'll look at child and adolescent development, programming power, outreach, library spaces, advocacy, savvy planning, service trends, teamwork and more. Its a chance to take a course based on the youth services coursework of Masters Degree in Library and Info Science students - so you'll be in the know.

The course is practical, lets you share your thoughts, challenges and successes and gives you the big picture thinking to increase your confidence in working with youth in your community.

Hope you can join me this fall as we learn and share together!

Power Up Conference - Last Call for Proposals

And now a word from our colleague, Meredith Lowe, Continuing Education Services at The Information School at UW-Madison:


Do you have ideas to share about management and leadership in Youth Services? The University of Wisconsin-Madison Information School is pleased to offer the second Power Up Conference to share your exciting ideas! The conference will take place in Madison, Wisconsin on March 28-29, 2019. The program committee will be accepting proposals until August 3, 2018.

Topics may include, but are not limited to: strategic planning, collaborations, ethics, leadership pathways, advocacy, mentorship, managing change, work/life balance, staff motivation, and innovation. Youth services librarians and staff from public libraries, schools, after-school programs, museums, etc. are invited to attend – we had 142 attendees from 20 states at the 2017 conference! More about the conference, including information about past conferences, is here

Our opening keynote address speaker is Andrew Medlar, former ALSC President and current director of BookOps, serving the New York Public Library and Brooklyn Public Library. Our closing keynote will be presented by Dr. Sarah Park Dahlen, Associate Professor of Library and Information Science at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, MN.

Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Statement
The Program Committee encourages a diversity of presenters representing a variety of personal and professional backgrounds, perspectives, and voices. We encourage submissions from anyone who is interested in presenting, including students, new professionals, first-time presenters, and representatives of allied professions.

Proposal Evaluation
The committee will evaluate all of the submissions as individual entries, and how they fit within the balance of conference content as a whole. The Program Committee will evaluate all proposals submitted by the deadline using the following criteria:
• Clarity and completeness of the proposal, particularly having well-developed content and sufficient speakers to address all relevant aspects of the topic;
• Originality and relevance of the proposed topic;
• Uniqueness of content in relation to other conference presentations;
• A range of speaker experiences and representations
How to submit a proposal


Please submit a 200-250 word description of your proposed session to Meredith Lowe, by August 3, 2018. Sessions at the conference will be one hour. Please include an additional sentence or two about how this proposal aligns with our diversity, inclusion and equity statement outlined above. Note that the proposal will not be the finalized description for the conference program; the committee will contact selected proposal submitters for a final draft.

Panel presentations are accepted. All selected proposals will receive one complimentary conference registration ($300 value), which may be divided however the presenters of that session choose.

Mission to Mentor

ALSC is looking for mentors. Can you help?

Lots of us mentor colleagues and peers everyday. We share and learn from people in the library to people in neighboring libraries and systems to state association colleagues to our networks on social media (Twitter, Facebook blogs) to our cohort from school or workshops or learning opportunities.

People who are mentored have a leg up in dealing with the picayune and the profound.

People who mentor are willing to share their thoughts and networks to help peers - and gain more knowledge and skills from their proteges.

What does it take to be a mentor?  A desire to share and support; encourage and listen; learn and explore.  We can all be mentors.

You don't have to be a decades-long employed librarian to be a mentor.

You don't have to know ALL.THE.THINGS. to be a mentor.

You don't have to have started a thing or achieved a thing or be involved in a thing to be a mentor.

As Nina Lindsay, ALSC President writes,  "Mentors need not be experts. A good mentor has experience, a grounding in standards and trends, a willingness to share and an eagerness to learn.  I have found mentoring to be much more rewarding than I ever anticipated, and I have learned much from my mentees."

If you would like to be a mentor, please consider stepping up to be one for ALSC. Over 30 people have applied to have a mentor - and there is still a need for mentors to match them with. You can apply by Sept 1 to be a mentor (more details and application here)

Youth services folks are effective because of our networking and support of each other. This is an opportunity to make a difference. Hope you will!

Saying Yes

In our Youth Services Section of the Wisconsin Library Association, the board is currently reaching out to association youth folks to consider running for board positions (vice-president elect and directors).

Some folks contacted say yes; some say no - or indicate they are no longer members.

I want to send out a call for all of us to consider putting in some time and support for our state (and national) library associations both as dues-paying members and as active participants.

I will say here to you what I have said personally to countless colleagues around our state to encourage them to step up and out into association membership and work.

As youth librarians, library associations need our voice.

As youth librarians, they need our leadership.

As youth librarians, they need our advocacy skills.

As youth librarians, they need our innovative ideas and flexibility.

As youth librarians, they need our compassion and our passion.

As youth librarians, they need our skill sets.

And what do we receive in turn from these associations?  Among many positives, I would include the opportunity to:

• strengthen our leadership skills
• grow our network of peers from outside the "youth services silo" to include colleague from all library types, ages and persuasions
• effect change by plunging our hands into the guts of an organization
• be organized for legislative action to protect library access, IF and our core mission and values
• find common ground and lifelong collaborative partners and friends

What other more intangible benefits accrue with association membership?

As a hiring manager, those candidates (MLIS or not) who were association members always went to the top of the "resumes-considered" stack. Their membership told me they were open to a larger view of librarianship, valued networks and a willingness to pitch in on behalf of the profession rather than just their own interests.

Plus active association membership (working on committees, boards, conferences) offers a pathway to leadership that makes the leap into management easier. Again hiring managers recognize that the candidate brings more than just experience at their day job to the table.

Association members have a network of peers IRL and in real time to tap and don't just rely on co-workers for all their support. This "long-form" peer mentorship of people is invaluable.

Please, when you get the call, say yes and stand up for your association and great libraries in your state. You will have the support and fun of working with other young, mid-career and veteran leaders and a chance to help support libraries in more than just your community. 

And you will not be alone. Your association peers and mentors will help you every step of the way (and if they don't, YOU will become the peer and mentor to lift those who come behind you up to successful leadership).

Last Call for Power Up Conference Proposals

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The sands of time are quickly running out for putting in program proposals for the exciting national conference on youth leadership and management coming in spring 2017. This is a perfect opportunity to pitch your thoughts and ideas relating to that topic.

The audience will be be both staff and managers, leaders and those who want to become more effective leaders. It promises to be a thought-provoking two days that hone in on the power that youth librarians hold!

Here are the details. But don't wait. The deadline is Sunday July 31.

Power Up: A Conference in Leadership for Youth Services Managers and Staff

March 30-31, 2017

Keynote address by Gretchen Caserotti, Library Director, Meridian Library District (Idaho)

Closing address by Deborah Taylor, Coordinator of School and Student Services, Enoch Pratt Free Library, Baltimore

Call for Proposals:

Do you have ideas about management and leadership in Youth Services? UW-Madison, School of Library and Information Studies is pleased to offer Power Up, a brand new conference to share your exciting ideas! The conference will be accepting proposals until July 31, 2016. Topics may include, but are not limited to: strategic planning, collaborations, ethics, leadership pathways, advocacy, mentorship, managing change, work/life balance, staff motivation, and innovation. Youth services librarians and staff from all over the country are invited to attend!

Please submit a 200-250 word description of your proposed session to Meredith Lowe, mclowe@wisc.edu, by July 31, 2016. Sessions at the conference will be one hour (45 minutes of presentation, 15 minutes of discussion).

Panel presentations are accepted. All selected sessions will receive one complimentary conference registration and a discount for staff members they wish to join them at the conference.

Be sure to bookmark this page to stay updated on the conference itself!

ALA as Re-invigoration

Sarah Houghton, she of the Librarian in Black blog, wrote a powerful post on lessons learned at ALA 2016.

She wrote: "I’ve had a hard few years professionally. I was looking for this conference to make me believe again–in what I do every day and in what I’ve dedicated my life to. Spoiler alert: It worked.  So…what did I learn?" Find out here.

You, like me, may find yourself nodding your head. 

Every day is a great day to be a librarian!

Kudos to ALSC

It was with real pleasure that I read that ALSC is offering their recently cancelled bienniel Institute (originally scheduled to take place in Charlotte NC in Sept) as a Virtual Institute online.

It is a BIG thing to undertake the cancellation of a major conference  - especially one that had already opened for registration. The ALSC board under the leadership of Andrew Medlar, with the able assistance of the ALSC office staff, listened, encouraged member discussion and input and researched what we as an association could do to respond to the law passed in NC that went against core values of our division as well as basic human rights.

The process was transparent and input deep and thoughtful -on all sides. The decision was a difficult one but one that I wholeheartedly supported. The ALSC board promised to honor the work of the institute organizers as well as committed participants by offering a way to still hold the conference - perhaps as a pre-midwinter conference in Atlanta or virtually.

I am very pleased that the decision was to go virtual on Sept 15-16, the time when the Institute would have been offered in Charlotte. Many of us had blocked out that time already. And for just slightly over the cost of an ALSC online course, ALSC members and non-members are invited to register for two days rich with online content. For many people who struggle to afford the costs of registration, lodging and transportation, this is an incredible bargain!

Head on over to the Virtual Institute webpage and register - and I'll see you virtually in September!

The Learning Curve

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I've been trying over the past couple of months to finish writing on two projects.*

For the first time in a very long time, I found it a real challenge to get down to business and put fingers to keyboard to do the actual composition of what amounts to five presentations all due within a few days of each other. I procrastinated over this in November and December. EVERYTHING seemed to take precedence over writing - from the ridiculous to the mundane. You know, that stuff.

While immersed in this procrastination period, I worried whether I was having some kind of performance anxiety. Why couldn't I get down to business? Was I struggling because I had bitten the forbidden fruit of retirement relaxation and lost some of my drive and discipline? Was I feeling like I had less to say on these subjects because I was less active in the day to day of librarianship? Or had I simply lost the confidence to express myself?

January finally kick-started me (as looming deadlines will) and I got 'er done (hurray)!

Then the tinkering started.  I dipped in and out of what I wrote constantly (thank you computers for letting me make constant revisions so easily). No sooner would I say, "I'm done" then a new piece of research would be published, a new blog post from a peer, a new article in the professional journals, a new Twitter thread, a new conversation with colleagues would get me right back to revising and refining my thinking.

If that all wasn't enough, over the past few days, during the amazing Wild WI Winter web conference developed by the equally amazing Jamie Matczak from the Nicolet Federated Library System, I plunged into webinar after webinar (and so can you - all the webinars are archived in the site).

You guys, I learned so much!! And that lightning bolt thought stitched together the last few month's writing delays into a realization.

It wasn't performance anxiety that held me back. It was more that I was learning so continuously that committing to something as a finished product seemed almost sacrilegious. Each revelation adds to my thinking and enlarges my view of librarianship. How can something one writes or thinks or believes ever be truly "finished"?

I don't think I'm alone here. In fact you may be going "She is one dense person. Isn't this obvious?" But that's learning for you.

Our lives are constantly about learning and revising and growing. This best part of our librarianship involves that ability to absorb, debate, revise, change, evolve and build on what we know given all the things we encounter in all the places. I am so appreciative of all the sharing everyone does that helps me keep learning and growing.

And I swear, I'll stop and call the class finished now (oh, look, a link....).

*One was a webinar on my 10 biggest management mistakes for the Wild WI Winter Web conference (above). The other is an upcoming four week class on youth management problem solving for UW-Madison SLIS CE

Peering at Peer to Peer Mentoring

No matter how long we've been in the profession, we all need mentors.

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Jessica Olin over at Letters to a Young Librarian has a brief post post about the importance of peer mentoring and it got me thinking about my own experience.

I was lucky, throughout my career, to have experienced librarians take me under their wings in my library jobs, in my state association work and at the national level. Their support helped me navigate alot and taught me a ton.

But I can also say, forty years down my library career path, I have relied - and still rely  - on my peers for a tremendous portion of my professional support. Often referred to as PLNs (personal learning networks), our peer mentors can be life and sanity saving. These men and women, from libraries of all types and sizes, were my go-to reality check, my support, my place to dish, to unload, to problem solve, to listen and learn.

Without these peers who shared the same journey I did and were kind counselors and ardent thinkers, I would have been far lonelier and isolated; unconnected and unchallenged in my practice and my perceptions. I've always said I learn at least one new thing everyday, and my peer mentors often led that learning. Our frequent contact (emails, calls, twitter, FB, in person lunches and visits) informed my career and helped me navigate a thousand good and bad experiences.

I am profoundly thankful to all of you who are/were there for me. And I encourage everyone to reach out to link to your peers and share and grow together.

As I commented in Jessica's post: "While all mentors have had a profound and lasting impact on my long career, my peer mentors have saved my bacon (oh, or tofu) time and time again. The support, commiseration, problem-solving, uplift, shoulder to cry on, bold "let's hatch a plan," collaboration and sassytalk have enriched my practice every day in every way!"

Where Do We Learn?

Of course everywhere.

On social media, through blogs and in social media groups.

Through mentor-protege relationships - whether informal or set up through ALSC or a state association.

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Through our libraries - in fact this post is inspired by Katie Salo's library asking staff to teach each other about their areas of expertise. Wow, libraries of the world, do this thing! Wouldn't it be great if every library cared to make sure all staff knows what all staff work is about?!?!

Through attendance at state and national conferences - both inside and outside the library world.

Through webinars and online classes like our state's continuing series of webinars with panels of practitioners at libraries large and small; formal CE credit courses through SLIS schools and our statewide Wild Wisconsin Winter Web conference with 10 national speakers.

Through attendance at workshops outside our usual territory - and often relatively nearby. In the past month, four of our YS team have attended three different seminal, breakthrough, slaying-sacred-cow seminars on shaking up summer reading programs around the state. While we already push the envelope in this area, we are inspired by other's stories, experiences and support. And we drove to learn more!

Through reasoned discourse like that going on here and here.

Through conversations with colleagues in the library, patrons and kids.

All our learning, all our sharing (we each have the power to reflect on and teach each other) pushes our practice and grows our understanding. No matter where we learn, we can't help but get better.

Our opportunities are everywhere. Carpe perceptum!!

ALSC Institute vs. ALA Conferences

We all only have so much continuing education/professional conference funding - whether it's from our institution or our own savings accounts. And of course there are many possible ways to use that money when thinking about national conferences - not just for ALA sponsored events but for groups like USBBY, Think Tanks, NAEYC, Computers in Libraries, STEM powered conferences, unconferences, and much more.  Choosing what works best and balancing our choices is definitely a challenge. Though we want to attend all the things, it just isn't possible.

Just off the end of the ALSC 2014 Institute in Oakland, I want to talk a bit about the differences in two of my favorite conferences.

ALSC Institute:
Held every other year at different venues around the country (next up Charlotte NC in fall 2016), this small intimate conference is focused, youth program heavy and -centric (16 unique sessions, plus at this year's Fairyland extravaganza, a choice of one of over a dozen other breakouts) and combines deep learning with great opportunities to hear from book creators/publishers.  This year, local and national authors in attendance and presenting or mingling numbered well over 40. That's quite an opportunity to speak personally with a book creator as well as hear their banter and thinking on panels!

It sounds bizarre to say that a conference with 350 youth librarians is intimate - but it is. You spend Wednesday night through Saturday noon with the same group of people - at meals, sessions and social events.  If you choose to take advantage of it, you meet and share with a ton of colleagues as well as run into people IRL that you only work with virtually. One of the true advantages of these "regional" national conferences is that you get a chance to meet many youth folks from the venue's surrounding areas. This year we saw lots of our CA, OR, ID and WA peeps who can't make it to annual. That was worth the price of admission alone.

Admission. Well, here is often where the rub comes. Even with sponsoring publishers and organizations, this remains an expensive conference when you combine registrations, transportation and housing. In terms of sheer opportunity to learn/network, these costs are more than made up for. This year, I paid the whole tab myself (PLA ate up the library CE funds this year) and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

ALA Conferences
Held twice a year these are the muscular conferences that move our association and profession forward. It's an opportunity for librarians to work on committees and task forces that hone leadership and problem solving skills by plunging hands, hearts and minds into the guts of improving service to our communities across types and sizes of libraries.

Vast, sprawling and often confusing, ALA conferences are also an extraordinary opportunity to work with librarians from all types of libraries on areas of passion (technology = LITA; Feminism = Feminist Task Force; Intellectual Freedom = Freedom to Read Foundation...and endless combos) outside of our primary focus. Amazing opportunities to see massive exhibits and get hands-on looks at new and upcoming youth titles are combined with opportunities to attend special events that publishers host (breakfasts, lunches, social hours) and let you rub elbows with book creators is definitely a perk.

In general ALA is far less programmatic. "What?!?!?!" you say, "There are a TON of programs to choose from!". Each division/unit is given a very small number of programs they can sponsor in the leaner paradigm adapted over the past few years. ALSC gets five, yes, I said FIVE program slots. Along with these there are independently pitched programs like Conversation Starters, Ignite sessions and Networking Commons opportunities that help attendees fill their dance cards.

I love the annual conferences for the committee work and networking opportunities across types of libraries. Its the way that I can give back to the profession by working on ALSC committees, task forces, the board and ALA Council. Working with my peers, we make a difference because together we are stronger.

Upshot?
If you can make it to both types of conferences, most excellent. If you need to choose, Institutes are more programmatic/intimate. ALA conferences are great for working hard towards a better profession and giving back to the profession by working on committees and learning leadership skills. Although, I guess I can say I never won a Pete the Cat doll at an ALA conference ;->

Nurturing Ideas - and Each Other

Stellar Nursery in Orion

This is one of my favorite photos at the always amazing Astronomy Picture of the Day. It shows the Great Nebula in Orion - a huge cloud of gas and energy where suns are forming in a stellar nursery. While the science intrigues me, I see it as a metaphor for what we can do best in youth services - help support and lift up our colleagues anywhere on their career path.

I've been thinking alot about this lately - partly because I've been teaching. There is this aspect of giving information in the act of teaching but a far deeper piece where the students give just as much -  sharing, problem solving, teaching and supporting each other. I always learn when I teach.

I've also been thinking about this - partly because I have been looking at management and hiring not just in our own library but also as I develop workshops, presentations and courses on  youth services management. Part of what you do every day as a manager is look for ways to open a path for the team members to work more smoothly - whether its removing a rock from the path, helping re-find the way, putting the brakes on a cart careening off the path or providing a little muscle to help ease the passage up a tough hill.

Partly because I have been in so many conversations with colleagues all over the country about how to encourage the sharing so we can preserve knowledge but also build on it. We should each want to plug into librarians at all points in their career to network, to share and to encourage their work and passion. Whether new or a vet, we can lift each other up by asking for our colleague's opinions, program ideas, and youth librarianship thoughts.

Amy Koester wrote recently about this is Storytime Underground and I couldn't agree more. We all have something to share, to learn and to gain. It isn't just the bloggers and presenters who have a platform though. It is every youth librarian every day in their work pushing that envelope further out. The stellar nursery isn't just for the beginners in librarianship - it is for everyone along their career's path. We all need that nurturing and support - and we all can give it.

Maybe, in addition to our PLN (personal learning networks), we need to commit to a ULN (universal learning network). Open ourselves up not just to our familiar network but build further and more openly outside of our tribe and our group and our lanes of connectivity. If we each think ourselves as a mentor - even if we are just six months into our first position - and our job is to lift each other up, how powerful could that be?!?!

We can then consciously support a youth librarian idea nursery that spreads and supports the work of us all by connecting to the unconnected, the un-cohorted, the un-MLISed. We can build the network by including never-before-presenters to panels we are creating to present at CE/conferences/webinars at all levels. We can make sure our blogs are open for guest posts. We can nurture those who don't have a path to leadership or an audience and are hesitant to step forward.

Flannel Friday, Storytime Underground, Thrive Thursdays and lots of bloggers are leading the way to this kind of universal support. Our challenge is to continue and reach more deeply out to those unconnected who can use the support just as much. I know we do it. But can we do it more? Oh yeah, we're youth librarians and we all are that nursery for each other.

Image Credit: R. Villaverde, Hubble Legacy Archive, NASA

We Stand Stronger Together

It's no surprise to long-time readers that I have been an active member of both state and national library associations.  I get alot of out my memberships in WLA, PLA, and ALA - mentorship; leadership opportunities; continuing education opportunities; access to award committee membership as well as serving on committees to advance youth librarianship; a chance to work together to strengthen libraries; opportunities to network with other colleagues; time to change how we approach youth services on a state and local level.

I also put my money into these associations because they stand up for me...and for you...and for us.  Our state and national associations stand up for libraries and librarians politically. They stand up for intellectual freedom and protecting everyone's right to read.  They work in partnership to ensure that there is equal access to reading and literacy regardless of format and age of user.

In our libraries and on social media we have the local advocacy and Personal Learning Network thing covered. I got that. And I still hear why do we need our associations - what do I get out of it? Well besides the above....

If we didn't have our state or national library associations, who would be standing up to be the voice of libraries on a state and national level?  Who would advocate for universal access, broadband partnerships, IF, youth services, services to seniors, ebooks accessibility and affordability?  Would YOU do it?  Could you do it? And how powerful would our voice and our money be alone?

All of this standing up costs money. I know. I have paid for my dues with very little help from my library employers for over thirty-five years. They didn't have the money either. It costs me $6-$10/week to belong to ALA, PLA and the Wisconsin Library Association.  It means weekly, I give up a couple of lattes or ice cream sundaes or a burrito or a lunch out. I don't buy that thing. For many years when I was paying back student loans and had heavy debts, it was really hard to find that money. But I know I need our associations strong so they can advocate for me and for all libraries and our services.

The 2008 recession and resulting lean years dealt heavy blows to almost everyone - individuals, municipalities and libraries. We all had to cut, re-assign priorities, pull in our belts and do the same with far less money. Being on ALA Council and the WLA board has brought home just how devastating these years have been on associations. Memberships and revenues have declined. Staff has been cut and our professional associations, like us, are working with far less money to accomplish their goals.

I see how close our associations are to the brink of losing effectiveness because they have far less money to address priorities. To me supporting our associations is a must.

We stand together far more strongly than when we stand alone. Will you join me?

Image: 'trust'  http://www.flickr.com/photos/49512158@N00/3434414425  Found on flickrcc.net

What *Does* Make a Great Library Worker?

At Stephen's Lighthouse today, he links to Kitty Pope's list of what makes a great library worker. I couldn't agree with Kitty's point more:

• Passion
• Flexibility
• Inquisitive life-long learner
• Patience
• Team Playing
• Be positive
• Believe people are good
• Make a difference in the lives of patrons
• Lead
• Communicate
• Innovate
• Market
• Understand and embrace change

I would add: honesty. What else?

Extra, Extra - Who's Got It?

I read a post by Jessica Olin over at Letters to a Young Librarian that really got me thinking. In it she reflects on what it is that motivates her to reach out and beyond herself to stay fresh in her work. She read Daniel Pink's book Drive and talks about his use of the mathematical concept "asymptote".  As Jessica writes, Pink "uses this concept to talk about motivation and skill mastery and about how, if you're really passionate about something, developing your practice never stops."

"If you're passionate about something, developing your practice never stops." 

Those words really struck me.  I think they encompass the difference between a great worker and an adequate or poor one.  When I look at colleagues I work (and have worked with) with at my libraries (at all position levels), colleagues professionally in my state and across the country, colleagues online and on social media sites, I know I most appreciate those who constantly strive and look for ways to do a better job and learn more each and every day.  They listen to the public and peers and leap out with great service.

They help ME learn. They help colleagues learn. They share ideas and enthusiasm generously and constantly. They aren't afraid to try, fail and try again.  They are collaborative. They care passionately about making life better for the customer. They are intrigued by solving the puzzle of advancing librarianship.

It isn't who they know.  It isn't how much they know.  It isn't how much knowledge and expertise they "own". It's how they process the things they see and hear to build consistently better service in collaboration with co-workers and the public.

And they don't stop. They don't phone it in after 10, 20, 30, 40 years of work. They bring it and they bring it every day for their customers.  When they feel badly managed, they bring it. When funding collapses, they bring it. When doors close in their face, they bring it. When their personal life is challenging, they bring it.

I'm not sure I'm enough of an uber-manager or colleague to help create that passion and ongoing commitment to developing practice where it has never existed or simply no longer exists. I don't know if I have the skills to expand very narrow passions ("I just want to be a grandma to the little kids and do storytimes"; "I know everyone in town, but you don't"; "I have a skill but it's mine and I'm not sharing."; "I served on state library association board once and I'm done with that forever").

But I know the people who truly are passionate, who have that "extra", are the ones that are most satisfied with their work, the most worry-free and take the most pleasure from the sharing, learning, collaboration and innovation they help create.  They love the moment that they step into work each day even if the challenges they face are discouraging. They don't give up. And they never stop developing their practice.

Are you someone like that?

Image: 'IMG_1904'  http://www.flickr.com/photos/45339532@N00/95202050